Bluefield finds Andrea Lewis 'unhittable'
By Jed Lockett
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
April 2, 2007
Some weather predictions on Wednesday called for an 80 percent chance of rain. The threat alone caused the postponement or cancellation of most games in the area.
But apart from a few isolated sprinkles, the heavy rain never materialized.
University of Charleston pitcher Andrea Lewis did, pitching a no-hitter in the first game of a doubleheader against Bluefield State at Graham Recreation Park on Wednesday, and allowing just one run and five hits in the second game to lead the Golden Eagles to wins by scores of 2-0 and 8-1.
In total, Lewis pitched 13 innings Wednesday, gave up one run on five hits, walked just three batters and struck out 17.
“Before games I go through a routine and everything was just on today. It was nice,” Lewis said. “I like to use my changeup a lot. My curveball wasn’t really working so I was glad I could come back with my changeup because I’ve been struggling with that a little bit.
“That’s my friend, she’s a very special pitch.”
All of Lewis' friends kept the Blues at bay.
Andrea Lewis
“She did a great job. We kept them off balance and she’s been throwing well this year,”
“She’s a tough pitcher,”
Lewis missed a perfect game in the first contest by just a couple errors by her fielders and a walk in the seventh inning. But Lewis made up for those mistakes by delivering a 2-for-2 performance as a hitter with a key RBI.
“We’re a lot of clutch players and all the girls can come through in any situation,” Lewis said. “It’s nice to have that.”
The Golden Eagles’ response to Lewis’s accomplishment immediately afterward was uncharacteristically low key for someone who had done what she had just done.
“I didn’t know that until my catcher said something to me,” Lewis said. “I felt pretty happy. I was more happy that we won because it was such a close score and everybody was hitting. Everything was good so I was happy.”
“I just think we got the first game and I think we were just focused on the second one,” Olenchick surmised. “This is our first conference game and I think we were a little bit nervous too being it was our first one.”
Lewis finally allowed a hit in the second inning of the second game and a run in the fourth. But the Blues never had a consistent response for her as she gave up five hits, struck out eight, and walked just two.
The Golden Eagles aided Lewis in the second game by getting their bats going in earnest. Maria Taylor led
“We have some that have quick hands and quick bats and they just had to stay back and time it and wait just a couple seconds,” Olenchick explained. “They started doing that and we started hitting. And then we started hitting better pitches too.”
Lewis’s performance overshadowed a solid yet fruitless day for the Lady Blues.
“Defensively we’ve come a long way,”
The 11-9 Golden Eagles play
“We’re going to definitely work on our hitting ’cause we’ve got to be able to hit the ball,” Olenchick said. “And there’s a couple things defensively that we’re going to work on.”
Game 1
Andrea Lewis and Brittany Stogdale. Nicole MacDonald and Connie McNeil. W—Andrea Lewis; L—Nicole MacDonald.
Game 2
Andrea Lewis, Natalie Murray (7) and Brittany Stogdale. Nicole Hall, Diana Robinson (6) and Bev Netusil, Connie McNeil (2). W—Andrea Lewis; L—Nicole Hall.